We are committed to teaching good sportsmanship and fair play. It is our belief that coaches have a great influence on the behavior and outlook of their players. We teach by example, with our words and actions. We encourage our players to treat all people with respect, whether a teammate, coach, official or opponent. We want to coach our players to the best of their ability, while also helping them to develop a solid character foundation by instilling honesty, loyalty & unselfishness. We want our players to be winners in sports and in life.

Jim Stagnitta - Director

Jim Stagnitta is currently the head coach of the Rutgers University men's lacrosse team.

In 2003, Stagnitta led Rutgers to the biggest turnaround in Division I, going 10-5 and gaining a bid to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1991. He was named the ECAC and National Coach of the Year.

The 2004 season proved just as impressive, finishing 8-6 overall, including a thrilling victory over 4th ranked Syracuse. Stagnitta's team was awarded an at-large berth into the NCAA Tournament for the second straight year.

Prior to Rutgers, Stagnitta guided Washington & Lee to 12 consecutive winning seasons, six conference championships and five appearances in the NCAA Tournament. His teams never lost more than five contests in his 12 seasons as head coach.

Stagnitta attended college at the University of Pennsylvania, where he was a player and a coach. As a player, he was a three-year letter winner as a starting defenseman. He led the Quakers to two Ivy League Championships, including the school's first-ever league title in 1983. Stagnitta later returned to Penn as the assistant coach where he helped the Quakers to consecutive NCAA Tournament berths, including a memorable Final Four run in 1988, when the underdog Quakers fell in the last minute to eventual national champion Syracuse. Penn won the 1988 Ivy championship and was 20-9 in his two seasons as an assistant coach.

Jim Rogalski- Assistant Director

Jim is currently assistant coach of the Rutgers University men's lacrosse team. Coached at Drexel for three years prior, and with Stagnitta for 2 years at Washington & Lee where they reached unprecedented success, guiding the Generals to a 20-3 overall record, No. 1 national ranking in 2001 and the NCAA Div. III National Semifinals in 2000. A graduate of St. Mary's College, Rogalski was a three-year starter and Second Team All-Capital Athletic Conference pick as a junior and a First Team selection as a senior.

Jason Basso

A former Rutgers lacrosse player, Jason Basso enters his first season as an assistant coach with the men's lacrosse program. Basso comes to the Scarlet Knights with several years of coaching experience already under his belt. He was a volunteer assistant coach with the Rutgers lacrosse program from 2003-2004, and from 2005-2006 was the assistant head coach at Hartwick College. Basso was involved in all aspects of the team at Hartwick, from defense, to recruiting, to strength and conditioning. In addition, this past summer Basso served as an assistant coach with the Iroquois National Team at the World Lacrosse Championships, where he worked primarily with the defense.

Basso, a native of Hicksville, N.Y., graduated from Rutgers in 2002 after having played two seasons for the Scarlet Knights, one under the direction of Stagnitta. A two-year letterwinner, he was the 2002 recipient of the Knight Cup, awarded to the player "who has played the game of lacrosse to the best of his ability, who has, by example, led his teammates both on and off the field and who, above all, has consistently demonstrated the qualities of unselfishness and loyalty to his team and Rutgers University." Basso played primarily defense and long-stick midfield for the Scarlet Knights.